Similarities Between Araby And A & P

The short stories, ‘Araby’ and ‘A&P’ are both narrated by young boys and have first-person narrators. A&P is narrated by Sammy, a 19-year-old cashier, and Araby by a school going youngster. They seem to be telling us the story as they see it, filled with clear observation and description. One theme common in both stories is boredom. In Araby, The narrator begins with a description of his surroundings. The street is quiet with people who “gazed at one another with brown imperturbable faces” (Joyce, 1914).The air at home is musty; the pages of the books he finds are curled and damp. These words signal dullness and decay. The lanes he plays in are muddy, and the cold bites his skin. His life is dark and colorless, something that must be endured. …show more content…
He remains in the shadows, following, admiring and worshipping Mangan’s sister from a distance because he believes he is not worthy of her affection. He is shocked when she talks to him, tells him about the bazaar and how she wanted to go but cannot. The narrator, full of romantic notions makes up his mind to bring her a gift from the bazaar. School felt tedious to him and he found himself unable to concentrate on anything other than her. He dreamed about her “even in places the most hostile to romance”. (Joyce, 1914).The girls seem to have power over them because of their sexuality. Sammy too is spellbound by the girl’s presence and wonders what they are thinking. Sammy is so taken with them, he cannot remember if he rang up a customer’s items or not. “I ring it up again and the customer starts giving me hell” (Updike, …show more content…
The narrator has to ask his uncle for permission to go to the bazaar, and wait for him to come back home so he could ask him for money. The uncle keeps him waiting and says that he had forgotten that the boy wanted to go to the bazaar. The narrator has to remind him twice and tell him where he planned to go. The fact that his uncle forgot shows us that the boy’s wishes hold no importance. The uncle also reminded the boy of his dependence on the adults. Araby is a symbol of all things foreign, magical, mysterious, and held the same promise of excitement as Mangan’s sister. In A&P Sammy is also attracted by their rebellion. The girls have dared to show up in the store in their bathing suits and the suits are a symbol of the girls’ disregard of the social rules of the small town. The store manager in A&P plays the same role as the uncle in Araby. He comes over and says, "Girls, this isn't the beach… We want you decently dressed when you come in here," and concentrates on giving the girls that “sad Sunday- school-superintendent stare” (Updike, 1961).As he watches one of the girls blush, Sammy infected with the same rebellious fire, quits work to impress the girls, “quick enough for them to hear, hoping they'll stop and watch me, their unsuspected hero" and stands up to the manager saying "You didn't have to embarrass them." (Updike,